Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-07-30

very productive In the early years of its
cultivation sixteen tons of potatoes are
said to have been raised on a single acre
without irrigation, and from so to leo
| bushels of corn was not considered an un-
usual yield In 1886, after thirty-four con-
secutive years of cultivation, so bushels Of
barley and 65 of wheat per acre were gath
| cred from several farms in the vicinity of
lone City.
FIVE CROPS OF ALFALFA,
Averaging one and half tons per acre at
one cutting, are frequently. taken from the
same land in the same year. although four
such crops are the usual number.
Apples, pears, peaches, plums, cherries,
apricots, primes, figs and almonds thrive
without irrigation. Smaller fruits and
berries thrive equally well with the larger
| fruits. Hops also find here congenial
soil and climate, the average yield being
from 1900 to 1000 pounds to the acre.
The farms, like the valley, are small
hence families are numerous and the social
aspect of the neighborhood partakes of an
Eastern character No farm is without
its orchard and vegetable garden, and the
dairy and hennery are ever present ad-
| juncts, going far towards making it an in
| dependent source of profit and pleasure.
These small farms consist Of from 100 to
$40 acres each and are generally owned
| by the farmer who cultivates them, and
valued form $50 to 500 per acre, accord
| ing to location and extent and quality Of
| Improvements. The principal crops raised
are corn, wheat, barley, potatoes, fruit,
hops and hay Small berries, vegetables,
poultry, eggs and the dairy also enter
| largely into the productions of the valley
especially have poultry and eggs become a
marked feature o: industry on the uplands,
both commanding high prices, especially
during the past few years. a seemingly
INExuAUsTIBLE VEIN OF LIGNITE COAL
Runs through the valley, and is found
about sixty feet below the surface. This
coal was discovered and the first mines
opened by F. c. Hall, who commenced
utilizing it for running the engines of his
Touring mills in lone City in 1860.
! This coal, though not of the best quality,
| has been used with success for many pur-
poses, and is now used extensively for
cooking and warming stoves, and is sold at
the mine for the sum of 81 80 per ton.
| The principal owner of this vein is the |
Central Pacific Railroad Company, which |
| ships large quantities of its product to
Oakland, San Francisco Stockton and Sac
ramento. Other parties own good coal
mines in this same vein. The Amador |
branch Of the Central Pacific Railroad |
| runs by these mines, and the cost of ship
| ping this freight is quite reasonable. The |
| vein varies in thickness from five to fifteen
feet. Frank Frates is the Superintendent
He has employed at the mine about fifty
men,, and Is extracting $500 to 5000 tons
per month. They have hosting and
| pumping works, with all the latest i'm
provements.
OTHER MINERALS.
a valuable copper mine, located three
miles east of lone City, has been i'll active
| operation for nearly twenty five years, yield
ing large quantities of ore, most of which
has been shipped to Boston for reduction.
This mine for many years paid handsome
| dividends to its owners. Owing to the low
price at which this metal has sold in the
markets lately, there is not much profit in
its present working.
Copper has wide distribution in ma
| ture, being found in most parts of the
world. 1t is one of the few metals that
occurs in the metallic state in nature, for
which reason it was in use by primitive
man long before he learned to extract it
from Its ores. 1t also possesses properties
that impart to it special value. 1t is
malleable alone, but may lie hardened by
| alloying with other metals, as with tim,
producing bronze, and with zinc, producing
brass. 1t fuses readily, and when polished
is beautiful metal,
| PossE EssING A RICH COLOR
And considerable luster Copper was an
article of commerce in America in the
time of the mound builders, and perhaps
earlier, as the mines of metallic copper on
! the shores of Lake Superior to have
been extensively worked by people con
cerning whom there exists now no tradi-
ton or record. In the days OF the alchy-
rnists copper was named from Venus, and
| given the same astronomical sign. i'm later
| times this metal has become indispensable.
| and it is fortunate that its distribution is
| so general over the surface of the earth
While some of its ores have been found
very rich, the greater portion of the world
product has been obtained from those Of
| low grade. This has heretofore not been
| generally understood, especially in Califor-
MIA, where not until recently have any at
tempts been made to utilize the poorer va
| rieties of ore.
POTTER CLAY.
Another source of wealth to this valley
is large body of superior potter's clay,
said to be the very best upon the coast,
which is shipped in carload lots to Oakland
and Sacramento manufacturers. Clay may
be defined rs hydrated silicate Of alum
ina, contaminated, more or less, by various
impurities mechanically intermixed with
it. 1t is frequently colored by metallic
oxides, and generally contains 4 small
quantity of alkali. Clay is the product OF
decomposed crystalline rocks, brought
down by the streams in former ages and
! deposited on the bottoms Of lakes, seas, and
| other bodies of water Glacial action has,
no doubt, assisted the work Of comminut-
ing these rocks.
Pure clay when thoroughly Incorporated
with water becomes plastic, but when
baked loses this property and becomes
hard. AS it shrinks in baking something
has to be added to coun-
teract this tendency The -.
mature of this addition .ZZ#z
| differs with the reouire- t5==zzsZ=Z=